The 2019 Roederer Estate “l’Ermitage” Vintage Brut Rosé was disgorged in November of 2023 and finished with a dosage of 5.5 grams per liter. It is crafted from roughly a fifty-fifty split of pinot noir and chardonnay...
The 2019 Roederer Estate “l’Ermitage” Vintage Brut Rosé was disgorged in November of 2023 and finished with a dosage of 5.5 grams per liter. It is crafted from roughly a fifty-fifty split of pinot noir and chardonnay, with four percent of the chardonnay being reserve wines from the 2016 vintage. Five percent of the vins clairs were barrel-fermented this year and this is the first l’Ermitage Rosé vintage to go through full malolactic fermentation. The wine’s color is its customary pale salmon and the bouquet is bright and expressive, wafting from the glass in a mix of white cherry, nectarine, bread dough, a beautiful base of soil and a topnote of dried flowers. On the palate the wine is deep, full-bodied, brisk and precise, with fine depth of fruit, lovely soil undertow, pinpoint bubbles and lovely balance on the long and complex finish. This is certainly approachable out of the blocks, but this bottling has such an exemplary track record for graceful aging that I would opt to tuck it away in the cellar for at least four or five years before broaching bottles in earnest, as there is more here to unlock with bottle age.